Brent Mather's 2006 Lexus IS 250 is still going strong, and it has more than 230,000 miles. Consumer Reports asked people why they think their cars made it past the 200,000 mile mark. Most, like Mather, credit TLC: "I do an oil change every 5,000 miles. I make sure the pressure, the air pressure of the tires is good and I keep looking out for it."

A Consumer Reports reader survey, covering more than a million vehicles, identifies which models most often reach 200,000 miles. The top ten are either Toyotas or Hondas. They're the Toyota Prius, Camry 4-cylinder, Corolla, Sienna V6 and Highlander V6. And from Honda, the Odyssey, Pilot, Accord 4-cylinder sedan, CR-V and the Civic, excluding the hybrid, SI and GX. Those owners spent an average of $550 on maintenance and repairs last year on things like brakes, shocks and timing belts.

Still Consumer Reports says by the time a car hits 200,000, you should think about replacing it. Auto expert Jim Travers explained, "By 200,000 miles, most cars' hard life on the road has begun to take a toll on the structure and key components. And older cars just don't have the numerous safety advances that have appeared in recent years." Those include collision avoidance, blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning, side-curtain airbags and electronic stability control. Consumer Reports says another advantage of replacing your old car: newer models have advanced steel and structural architecture that absorb the impact of a crash better.